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A $3.94 sale of Grizzly long-cut smokeless tobacco will cost Granite Falls SuperAmerica a $250 fine and $7,000 to $10,000 in sales, business owner, Kevin Thoma, told Granite Falls City Council members during a tobacco compliance check hearing on Monday.
On August 23, the gas station and convenience store was cited for its third tobacco violation over a 24-month period which, in accordance with city statutes, resulted in the fine and a seven-day suspension of the business’ tobacco license.
Since the ordinance was adopted by the council in 1998, it is the third time that such penalties have been imposed, but the first time that a hearing has been requested.
Thoma agreed to pay the $250 fine but asked council members to consider abating the seven-day suspension. He noted that employees are taught not to sell to minors and that he couldn’t be there to supervise them 24 hours per day.
“I don’t condone selling tobacco to minors and I’m not proud of what happened,” he said. “All employees are required to watch a video that teaches them how to complete sales of tobacco in a correct manner ... All employees are required to sign a policy that they won’t sell to people under-age.”
Thoma said that the last instance in which the business was cited was a “perfect storm,” noting that it was the cashier’s first job and first night closing alone.
“He had a great deal of responsibility and was nervous,” said Thoma. “He asked to see the ID, looked at the ID and made a human error––he sold the product because he miscalculated the age.”
The employee was given a written warning and suspended as a result of the sale. In information provided to the city, an apology letter from the employee was included.
Council members seemed sympathetic to the circumstance, but according to City Attorney Greg Holmstrom, the issue was out of the city’s hands.
Holmstrom said that ordinance matched state statute and that the city was obligated to be at least as strict as Minnesota legislation. He said that the statute provided only two basis for defense: one, if the products sold were for religious or cultural ceremonies and, two, if the ID had been fake.
Otherwise, the owner is responsible for all sales by their employees and “the license shall be – not may be – shall be suspended,” Holmstrom said. “So unfortunately for Mr. Thoma, I don’t think the council has any choice.”
Council members completed the hearing with a resolution stating that the business was at fault for the sale, necessitating the fine and suspension.
Of the two preceding compliance check failures, which occurred in July and October of 2010, Thoma said that in one instance the employee who made the sale is no longer with the business and in the second circumstance, the employee was confused by an out-of-state license.
Since the original sales occurred, SuperAmerica has passed two compliance checks.
A $3.94 sale of Grizzly long-cut smokeless tobacco will cost Granite Falls SuperAmerica a $250 fine and $7,000 to $10,000 in sales, business owner, Kevin Thoma, told Granite Falls City Council members during a tobacco compliance check hearing on Monday.
On August 23, the gas station and convenience store was cited for its third tobacco violation over a 24-month period which, in accordance with city statutes, resulted in the fine and a seven-day suspension of the business’ tobacco license.
Since the ordinance was adopted by the council in 1998, it is the third time that such penalties have been imposed, but the first time that a hearing has been requested.
Thoma agreed to pay the $250 fine but asked council members to consider abating the seven-day suspension. He noted that employees are taught not to sell to minors and that he couldn’t be there to supervise them 24 hours per day.
“I don’t condone selling tobacco to minors and I’m not proud of what happened,” he said. “All employees are required to watch a video that teaches them how to complete sales of tobacco in a correct manner ... All employees are required to sign a policy that they won’t sell to people under-age.”
Thoma said that the last instance in which the business was cited was a “perfect storm,” noting that it was the cashier’s first job and first night closing alone.
“He had a great deal of responsibility and was nervous,” said Thoma. “He asked to see the ID, looked at the ID and made a human error––he sold the product because he miscalculated the age.”
The employee was given a written warning and suspended as a result of the sale. In information provided to the city, an apology letter from the employee was included.
Council members seemed sympathetic to the circumstance, but according to City Attorney Greg Holmstrom, the issue was out of the city’s hands.
Holmstrom said that ordinance matched state statute and that the city was obligated to be at least as strict as Minnesota legislation. He said that the statute provided only two basis for defense: one, if the products sold were for religious or cultural ceremonies and, two, if the ID had been fake.
Otherwise, the owner is responsible for all sales by their employees and “the license shall be – not may be – shall be suspended,” Holmstrom said. “So unfortunately for Mr. Thoma, I don’t think the council has any choice.”
Council members completed the hearing with a resolution stating that the business was at fault for the sale, necessitating the fine and suspension.
Of the two preceding compliance check failures, which occurred in July and October of 2010, Thoma said that in one instance the employee who made the sale is no longer with the business and in the second circumstance, the employee was confused by an out-of-state license.
Since the original sales occurred, SuperAmerica has passed two compliance checks.
In other news:
•Following a hearing in which no one was in attendance nor contacted the city prior with concerns, council members approved a 20-year tax abatement requested by the Granite Falls EDA for the Riverview Apartments in the amount of $101,000.
Last week, the Chippewa County Board approved an approximately 10-year $30,000 abatement for the apartment complex. Orignally the board was asked for a 20-year abatement of $60,000, but commissioners decided to stick to the county ordinance which limits abatements to 10-years.
Intentions are to use the abatement to offset approximately $238,000 in estimated repair costs that have been mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The tax abatement involves finances that would have been paid to the city or county as taxes, but in this instance will instead go towards repairs.
•Council members followed recommendations by the EDA in their modification of one loan and the approval of two others.
-An EDA loan of $25,000 was approved to Todd Soderstrom, owner of Sode’s Performance. The loan is part of a $105,000 package that will assist Sodestrom in the purchase of the Prairie Palette property located across the street from his auto repair shop located on Highway 212.
According to council information, Soderstrom intends to expand his business onto the site, and the loan carries a three percent interest rate to be repaid over a period of 10 years.
-Aiding local Jim Aus in the purchase of Dairy Queen, council approved a $100,000 EDA loan at three percent interest, to be repaid over a period of 10 years, that is contingent upon proof that remaining financing needed for the purchase is in place.
-Council members voted to extend a loan modification an additional 12 months for local manufacturer, Cutting Edge Industrial Technologies.
•With the hope of obtaining a grant that would assist the city in repairing and upgrading the pedestrian bridge, council members approved the hire of Minnesota Valley Regional Development commission to submit on the city’s behalf, two grant request.
A Federal Trail Grant will run the city $1,000 and a Scenic Byway Program grant, $1,800. In the latter instance, the grant is contingent upon financing timeline that falls in line with the city’s bridge repair deadline of 2013, after which the city would lose a state bonding appropriation equal to approximately half of the repair and upgrades estimated at $1 million in cost.
•Informed that the Richter Field scoreboard will be obsolete next year, the council members agreed to have the city pay a 1/3 of the approximately $21,000 cost of a new scoreboard. An equal amount will be funded by the school and an anonymous donor.
